Interesting Facts

• Nahor was the brother of Abram and Haran.
• Nahor was born after Serug lived thirty years.
• Nahor’s father, Serug, taught him the researches of the Chaldees to divine and augur according to the signs of heaven.
• Nahor married Milca, the daughter of his brother Haran, and sister to Sarah, Abram’s wife.
• Nahor also had children with a concubine named Reumah.
• Nahor and his family continued to dwell in Haran and did not go with Abraham to the land of Canaan.
• Nahor had twelve sons besides his daughters, and they also had children born to them in Haran.

Genealogy

• Nahor was the son of Serug. Serug was the son of Reu, who was the son of Peleg, who was the son of Eber, who was the son of Salah. Salah was the son of Arpachshad. Arpachshad was a son of Shem, who was a son of Noah.
• Nahor was the brother of Abram and Haran.
• Nahor married Milca, his niece, who was the daughter of his brother Haran.
• Nahor also had a concubine named Reumah.
• Milca bore Nahor eight sons: Uz, Buz, Kemuel, Kesed, Chazo, Pildash, Tidlaf, and Bethuel.
• Reumah bore Nahor four sons: Tebah, Gaham, Thahash, and Maachah. Thus, Nahor had twelve sons in total.
• Bethuel was the father of Sechar, Laban, and Rebecca. Rebecca later became the wife of Isaac, Abram’s son.
• The descendants of Nahor, born in Haran, included Abi, Cheref, Gadin, Melus, and Deborah (children of Uz); Berachel, Naamath, Sheva, and Madonu (children of Buz); Aram and Rechob (children of Kemuel); Anamlech, Meshai, Benon, and Yifi (children of Kesed); Pildash, Mechi, and Opher (children of Chazo); Arud, Chamum, Mered, and Moloch (children of Pildash); Mushan, Cushan, and Mutzi (children of Tidlaf); and Sechar, Laban, and Rebecca (children of Bethuel). Aram and Rechob later moved to a valley by the Euphrates and built the city Pethor. The children of Kesed also moved and built the city Kesed in the land opposite Shinar.

Historical Context

Nahor lived in Ur of the Chaldees initially, a region known for its Chaldean learning and the practice of divination and augury, skills in which his father Serug instructed him. This suggests a cultural context where celestial observations and interpretations were significant. Later, Nahor moved with his father Terah and his brothers Abram and Haran towards Canaan, but the family settled in Haran. The land of Haran was noted for being exceedingly good for pasture, indicating an agricultural and possibly semi-nomadic society. While Abram eventually left Haran for Canaan, following what he understood to be the Lord’s instruction, Nahor remained in Haran with his father and their extended families. This suggests a difference in their spiritual inclinations or priorities, with Nahor perhaps being more attached to the familiar life and surroundings of Haran. The narrative mentions that in the ninety-first year of Abram’s life, conflict arose between the children of Chittim and Tubal, indicating a period of migrations and territorial disputes among the descendants of Noah. The continued dwelling of Nahor’s family in Haran while other descendants were spreading out to build new cities illustrates different patterns of settlement and expansion in the generations after the dispersal from Babel.

Narrative

Nahor’s personal story, as depicted in the sources, is largely intertwined with his family. He is born to Serug and is taught Chaldean practices of divination. He becomes the brother of Abram, who would later become a pivotal figure, and Haran, whose life ends tragically in Ur. Nahor marries his niece Milca, daughter of Haran, and together they have a large family. He also has children with his concubine Reumah. A significant aspect of Nahor’s narrative is his decision to remain in Haran when his father Terah and his brother Abram initially set out for Canaan. Even after Abram’s continued journey to Canaan, Nahor stays in Haran, and his father Terah eventually dies and is buried there. This separation marks a divergence in the paths of Abram’s immediate family, with Nahor and his descendants establishing themselves in Mesopotamia while Abram journeys towards the land promised by the Lord. The text notes that Nahor’s brother Aram, son of Zoba (another son of Terah), eventually leaves Haran with his large family due to their extensive possessions, indicating that the land of Haran, while initially sufficient, could become limiting for growing families. Later in Abram’s life, after Terah’s death, Abram receives news of Nahor’s growing family in Haran, highlighting the continued connection between the two branches of the family despite their geographical separation. Furthermore, when Abram seeks a wife for his son Isaac, he instructs his servant Eliezer to go to his father’s house and to his kindred, in the city of Nahor, to find a suitable wife, indicating that Nahor and his family remained an important part of Abram’s extended kin and heritage. Rebecca, Nahor’s granddaughter through his son Bethuel, is ultimately chosen as Isaac’s wife, solidifying the connection between Abram’s lineage and Nahor’s descendants. While Nahor himself does not engage in direct interactions within the main narrative concerning Abram’s covenant and journey, his role as the progenitor of a significant branch of Abram’s family, including Isaac’s wife, places him as a crucial, albeit stationary, figure in the unfolding story of Abram’s descendants.